RTV - Tyler Tofel

Under Survellience: Big Brother Reveals it All

John De Mol’s Big Brother is a reality game television show that creates excitement, drama, and intensity throughout its long, drawn-out seasons each summer due to new houseguests, ordinary people,  moving into the Big Brother house, where they are under constant 24/7 surveillance and are cut off from the outside world as far as news and technology goes. Big Brother is “an eerily addictive deconstruction of power, a competition about people who do nothing except dream of ways to betray each other, and a portrait of humanity in extremis that feels a little bit like a political satire and a little bit like war” (Franich).  It is the epitome of more than just entertainment, it is a guilty pleasure that offers viewers an opportunity to escape their own reality, and invest themselves in the houseguest relationships that blossom throughout the season, while also learning about the narcissistic behavior that is displayed in many ways every single season. As the summer unfolds the close quarters, the competitions, and the withdraw from society bring out the true personalities of the houseguests, drawing in the viewers to see who will survive the latest eviction and come out on top.

Every season of Big Brother features new houseguests that are ordinary, relatable and always has an excellent demographic representation of America.  They are usually a variety of ethnicities, genders, ages, religions and sexual orientations, and from towns and families all viewers can connect with. For example in season 18, houseguests featured for the summer included James, a 32 year old small town single father, DaVonne,  a 28 year old outspoken, female, African American poker dealer, Jozea, a gay 25 year old makeup artist, Natalie, a 26 year old event planner and Glenn a 50 year old former police detective. With this type of diversity among the houseguests, there is usually a houseguest who any viewer can relate to, and plenty of drama, tears and fights to look forward to, such as this small argument that takes place. It is addicting to watch the relationships and culture clash evolve in these close quarters. With the cameras running 24 hours a day, why not see what your favorite houseguests are up to anytime you want?

As the days go by, the house guests tend to forget the cameras are there, and as viewers, we get to see how people really talk, act and think (or don’t think), which makes for riveting and engaging television. “With each passing week, you can actually see them become a little more unhinged, as cabin fever sets in and emotions run higher and higher” (Franich). As the viewers invest their time and become attached to the houseguests, they see the true personalities of the contestants emerge, which can lead to self reflection for those viewers who are invested, as well as the contestants themselves.  For example, in season 15 contestant Aaryn Gries was better known for her racist slurs and derogatory comments than her game play.  Even though Aaryn made a public apology to her houseguests, her hurtful words caused tears and sadness in more than the people she was just directly trying to attack. These are actions that cannot be apologized for, and always indirectly affect way more people than were intended. She also seemingly learned her lesson, as she is quoted as saying,  "I definitely was shocked with how serious things were taken," she told THR.  "Some of the things were taken out of context but either way, I definitely regret saying those things. I never wanted to hurt or offend anyone, and when I realized how I had affected people, it made me really think about how I'm going about things. And I need to be more cognizant of what I'm doing and saying all the time." As a result of her actions, once the season was over, she lost her job and the respect of many proving that your words and actions always have consequences.

Many contestants become a part of the show in the hopes of being discovered or for the selfish reason of advancing their career.  Those are the ones to really invest in and have fun watching because their journey typically implodes, wreaking havoc in the house. Paulie Calafiore, a contestant season 18 and younger brother of season 16 runner up, Cody Calafiore,  came into the house believing the lessons learned from his brother’s experience would take him all the way.  His egotistical attitude, confidence, and strength carried him far, however, they were also his ultimate downfall. In many cases we see  “The “Big Brother” TV show has become one of the channels of becoming a celebrity and the contestants do not hide their wish to be famous. This motivation to participate in the program – which includes exploration of intimate, private and sometimes embarrassing, moments – makes narcissism a central personality trait of individuals who are ready and wish to take part in such a program.”   (Rubinstein 223). The pent up frustration and the inability to interact with the outside world often provides an extra motive of strength for house guests when one of the competitions rolls around for that week.

Airing three times a week, viewers are drawn to Big Brother for not only the personalities of the contestants, but also the various competitions pitting houseguests against each other. The three main types of competitions are Head of Household (HOH), Power of Veto (POV), and Have or Have-Not competitions.  While each of the competitions contribute greatly to the outcome of the game, they often cause shifts of power within the household. “In the best seasons, the power structure of the house essentially reboots every week. Someone who was nearly sent home can win HoH and immediately take revenge on their enemies. A heretofore powerless player can win HoH and suddenly become the house rainmaker — and if they anger the wrong person, they might find themselves in the sniper scope the following week” (Franich).  Regardless of the type of competition airing, viewers tune in to see not only who will be victorious but what is expected of them and how they perform. The competitions range from endurance to skill, can include trivia and often refer back to events that have happened during the course of the season, testing all abilities, leaving both the house guests and viewers to wonder who will take the top spot for that week.

During each new season of Big Brother, strategical thinking is crucial and you can expect alliances to occur.  It is difficult to survive in the game without the support of others, so the players must skillfully and carefully choose whom to align themselves with, and when, while also recognizing, when it may be time to stab your ally in the back.  Some players are quite brilliant playing both sides, while others are a train wreck. In some cases the alliances make it to the end, in others they crash and burn quickly.  As a viewer it is interesting to watch and see how people manipulate one another,  who is willing to scheme, lie and work behind other’s backs and who isn’t. It is also interesting to watch

Derrick, Donny, and Frankie from Season 16, the original "Team America"

how the alliances evolve, as some form immediately upon walking into the house while others evolve throughout the game.  One thing that always challenges the alliances is Big Brother’s motto, “Expect the Unexpected”.  Each season they throw in several different twists to keep the house guests, and viewers on their toes. For example, twins switching places every few days, surprise double evictions, or in the case of viewers choice, Team America,  where they had to complete secret tasks chosen by the viewers to earn a prize. “Because Big Brother airs on on television concurrently with the housemates’ imprisonment, the show’s editors don’t have a long post-production cycle to decide who they’ll present as a hero or a villain; so the end result is something which feels a little bit more like genuine truth” (Franich), which comes after approximately twelve weeks in seclusion.

Big Brother runs for about three months and ends with the final nine houseguests evicted being sent to the jury house.  While in the jury house, there is still no contact with the outside world, however they are provided updates on the progress of the game through DVD’s which are brought in by the evicted houseguest each week. “What makes Big Brother both unique and great is that, as the power dynamic shifts, so does your perspective on the house.  A loveable underdog can become a villainous powermonger, and vice versa” (Franich).  Ultimately, it is these nine jurors that must consider the gameplay, strategy, and behavior of the remaining two houseguests to determine who will win the $500,000 grand prize.  Will loyalty and honesty win out or will scheming, lying and backstabbing be the victor?

Works Cited

“'Big Brother 15's' Controversial Houseguests Respond to Losing Their Jobs.” The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Sept. 2013, www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/big-brother-15-controversial-houseguests-632350

Deery, June. Reality TV. Malden, MA: Polity Press, 2015.

“Ethno‐Class Distinctions and Reality (TV).” Shoshana - 2015 - Sociological Forum - Wiley Online Library, Mar. 2016, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/socf.12225/abstract.

Franich, Darren. “After 500 episodes, it’s time to add ‘Big Brother’ to the reality TV pantheon.” EW.com, Time Inc, 11 Dec. 2016, ew.com/article/2013/09/06/big-brother-cbs-reality-tv-pantheon/.

Rubinstein, Gidi. “Modesty Doesn’t Become Me.” Journal of Individual Differences, vol. 37, no. 4, 2016, pp. 223–230. doi:10.1027/1614-0001/a000209.